First off this is my ride. 1979 Dodge d100, Rebuilt 225 Slant 6, A-833 4 speed, 265 mechanical cam, clifford intake/headers/ Edelbtock 1801 Carb, MSD A6 ignition, Blaster 3 coil, Powermaster 75091 Alternator....

Whew. That being said i have been using this truck as a daily driver. I haven't had any real issues until now. So here is what its now doing...

I can start it fine. The electric choke works well. I can drive it for about 10-15 miles (or in tell everything warms up). But once i get to this point the motor "feels" like its losing power or not getting enough fuel. Then it gets real bad. It almost "feels" like its misfiring or that a plug wire is disconnected. It gets to the point where i have to run in 3rd gear. And i can't come to a normal stop or it will die and i cant get it started. I have to roll to a stop in neutral and rev the motor at 2000-2500 rpm to keep it running. So I think its either spark or fuel. And I'm leaning more to spark. I am using the original fuel pump. I can see fuel in the filter and my pressure tester shows it running at 5.5 psi at idle and 4-4.5 psi at WOT. So i believe its getting enough fuel. I am using the original distributor. The only thing I have replaced on it was the nylon gear at the time of the rebuild.

So.... with all that being said here is my questions.

1: With using the powermaster one wire alternator should I use the original power wire setup or should i run a new power wire directly to the battery? Can this be upsetting my ballast resistor?
2: Should i change the reluctor or the vacuum advance in the distributor?

At this point I have no idea what to do and any help would be nice.

_________________
~Nic

Carb needle valve not fully closing.

Take the top off the air cleaner and see if fuel is dribbling out of the vent and/or venturis when it's running

_________________
Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

It is. I thouhgt the IMS were sticking so i even blew them out.

_________________
~Nic

Derp.... I guess I should read you're first sentence before replying....

I dont know if the needle is closing fully to the seat but I do know the floats are adjusted right. And when you say "see if fuel is dribbling out of the vent and/ or venturis" you mean at idle right? To see if excess fuel is leaking down the main body?

_________________
~Nic

I would strongly look at your carb, and leaks at the intake manifold (both at the head, and the carb/carb plate on the manifold...

The fact that you state your symptoms occur after the vehicle is warmed up tends to support, that when the choke is on creating a rich condition in the manifold things are fine, but when it warms up and the choke pulls off it suddenly leans things out and it loses power...

Check for manifold leaks, and if none present, adjust the choke to stay on a little longer, then if both don't cure it, time to adjust your jetting rods in carb or go up to the next size.

This is not a lean issue. I was running these jets and metering rods for 5 months before this started. As for intake leaks, I have tried the "Starting fluid trick" and the idle does not change, so I dont think its that. Plus im pulling 19 Hg of vac at the manifold. When I say things "warm up" I mean that everything diff, trans, PS, heater, are all at operating temps.

_________________
~Nic

According to the MSD instructions for the Blaster III coil, you are not supposed to use a ballast resistor when using the MSD6 or MSD7. The coil + and - should connect only to 2 wires from the MSD 6. If you have a ballast in the system then it is sounds like it is heating up, increasing resistance, and killing spark....in addition to just generally reducing spark energy from the MSD6 for no good reason.

Download the instructions for the coil here:
http://www.msdignition.com/Products/Coi ... _Coil.aspx

Then find the MSD 6 instructions at the MSD site and make sure all is good there. You need to correct the ignition system wiring before looking elsewhere.

I do not have the coil connected to the resistor. The MSD system is separate from everything else which is connected to the resistor.

_________________
~Nic

So an update...

I went out this morning changed plugs. Blew out the IMS on the carb. Pulled the top off the carb. and cleaned the needle and seats. Checked float levels. After putting everything back together I ran it down to the machine shop where I had the motor rebuilt. The guy there originally thought "a carb issue" but after playing with it he said " it revs smoothly from idle but there is defiantly an issue" He then suggested I do a compression test and make sure the valves were adjusted right.

My only problem is that I dont have a compression tester.....

_________________
~Nic

You don't need a compression tester to adjust the valves..........

You need a feeler gauge set and maybe a new valve cover gasket.

_________________
Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

Lol i know that but he said to test the compression 1st then check the valves.

_________________
~Nic

Uuuuuh,... than I am baffled as to why do you mention a ballast resistor in your original post? Is the ballast still in the car, and if so, what IS it connected to? For the MSD6A, it is only used in certain circumstances with certain tach feeds and such. Your symptoms can come from weak ignition and so that needs to be wrung out and explored.

"1: With using the powermaster one wire alternator should I use the original power wire setup or should i run a new power wire directly to the battery? Can this be upsetting my ballast resistor? "
This was my question that pertained to the resistor. NOT the MSD. The alt wiring runs through the resistor and other items before reaching the battery. The MSD runs off the battery, hence my original question. But I no longer think its a matter of spark or fuel....

_________________
~Nic

OK now makes sense. As an FYI, nothing associated with the alternator (new or original) should run 'through' the ballast; the original wiring will have 1-2 ballast connections in common with the charging system but the ballast will not be 'in' the charging system. I hope you are not saying that the alternator wiring runs through the ballast in any way.

As for the 1 wire, you could run it direct to the big lug on the starter relay. The ammeter won't indicate as it originally did anymore.

Well thats the thing... I also have an upgraded wire harness and H4 headlights. So my Amp meter doesnt work right anyways. But if I remember correctly the main power wire gos to the fire wall>Amp meter>Fusebox>firewall>starter relay>battery. All I wanted to know was if I could run the wire direct to the battery.

_________________
~Nic